Swype data entry is totally gesture-based; for real

As TechCrunch 50 rolled on this week, Swype was demoed at the event and it looks to be very much the data entry with full-featured gesture we’ve all been hoping for.

What’s super cool is that you type by connecting letters using your finger or a stylus. There is a predictive text function that picks out letters and words that seem to be what you’re going for. And while Swype may get understandable comparisons to an iPhone app called Shapewriter, this one is much more powerful. It functions on both Windows and Windows Mobile and an iPhone version will be coming shortly.

Estimated typing speed with this gesture-based system could be up to about 50 words per minute. Which is extraordinary when you think about it. We’re talking about “typing” on a mobile device, here. Check out the video of Swype in action below: